Common sense water policy is HPWD goal

Published 2:21 pm, Friday, February 21, 2014

NOTE: The following op-ed article is by HPWD Precinct Five District Director Ronnie N. Hopper of Petersburg, who represents residents in a portion of Floyd County and all of Hale and Swisher counties.

The High Plains Water District Board of Directors and staff are working to develop common sense water policy for our district. Our goal is to develop policy by April 1, 2014, and to implement it by Jan. 1, 2015.

Water and its use are complex and often controversial issues.

Water strikes at the core of our liberty. I believe that private property ownership has made this nation greater than many others, thereby revealing the great responsibility that lies on our shoulders. In the past, the groundwater has provided livelihood for tens of thousands of our residents, paid for the education of our children and helped build our cities.

For generations, West Texas landowners have struggled to purchase land. I sometimes think that water policy should be decided solely by my fellow landowners and me. After all, we are the only group immediately affected by water district policy. West Texas producers and landowners are generally an independent lot. It is easy for us to become self-absorbed and solely independent until we stop to realize that we, like others, need someone else.

Yes, we produce the commodity, but someone else processes it and sends it along the chain toward public consumption. Someone else educates our children and prepares them for their future. Someone else protects our homes and businesses from fire and theft. Think of the thousands of businesses, both large and small, that depend on each other for their livelihoods. The list is endless. I am amazed how little I do for myself each day and how much others do for me.

Our water decision, as I see it, is a debate between preservation versus conservation.

There are those who believe the groundwater stored under lands of our district should be set aside (preserved) for future use. They believe water will be of greater value to the future residents. For those who favor conservation, on the other hand, believe the groundwater should be used in a judicious and prudent manner (conserved) in present times.

Remember, land always moves to its highest and best use. When our area was first settled, it was ranch land for cattle. Later, the land was broken out and it became irrigated farmland, a higher and better use. Irrigated agriculture generates more dollars moving through the economy than does dryland production.

I explain the difference as $400. In round numbers, I spend $700 in production expenses for each irrigated acre that I farm and $300 for each dryland acre. The $400/acre is reduced revenue to our local communities, impacting local businesses. It is easy to see the reduction in revenue when our farmland moves from irrigated to dryland agriculture. Over time, irrigated farmland will continue to move toward dryland production.

Still, agriculture has a great story to tell. More than ever before, crops such as corn, wheat, sorghum and cotton produce higher yields with greater efficiencies using less water. For example, the amount of water required to produce one pound of cotton 40 years ago is now producing more than three pounds. This is only one of many examples: a great success! This trend will likely continue.

My fellow directors at HPWD and I will not have the wisdom to develop sound water policy without the advice, consent and support of the stakeholders. We ask for this input and support as we move forward with our task.